Police brutality is the wanton use of excessive force, usually physical, but potentially in the form of verbal attacks and psychological intimidation, by a police officer. Widespread police brutality exists in many countries, even those that prosecute it. It is one of several forms of police misconduct, which include: false arrest, intimidation, racial profiling, political repression, surveillance abuse, sexual abuse and police corruption.

The following is an account of flagrant abuse of police power..........

I am 59 years old. I weigh in at 155lbs and am a life long peaceful citizen of the world. The sad thing about this tale is that the abuse continued throughout the justice system... to call it a Kangaroo Court would actually be a compliment. The prejudice, partisanship and hubris I experienced is beyond justification. Read on............... WHAT HAPPENED ON THE NIGHT OF SATURDAY THE 3rd OF DECEMBER 2011 at 10:50 approximately. I thought I was coming upon an accident scene. I saw a police cruiser on the south east hard shoulder lights flashing. On the opposite side of the road was a tow truck lights flashing, on the SW corner, behind the tow truck (a white International flatbed) was another police cruiser. The area was very dark and there was no outward sign of a R.I.D.E. Program. Temperature was approx 2` or 3` Celsius, visibility was good to hazy.

I then saw a police officer whose attention was not directly on me, and was neither wearing a luminous vest nor was the flash light the usual highly visible R.I.D.E. flashlight, but a smaller LED. He was swinging the flashlight in the direction of traffic flow which I interpreted to mean proceed with caution. I slowly passed the officer with my drivers side window fully down. As I passed the officer by about 2 meters he screamed at me “Where the fuck do you think you’re going?" I immediately stopped my car and the officer approached my open window. He spat out the question “Do you not understand police signals to stop?” To which I replied “I’m sorry officer I thought it was an accident scene” and I was going to say I thought you were waving me thru. However, I was unable to finish my sentence because he interrupted me to yell in my face “Identify yourself!”

I went into total shock at the intensity of the officer's interrogation. I never refused to identify myself at any time, I did request the officer to identify himself. To which the response was “I don’t have to fucking identify myself to you”. Then the officer started shouting orders at me. Pull over there! Get out of the car! Identify yourself! Barking orders at me rapid fire to which I was unable to respond. He threatened to drag me out of the car and said he would beat me up. I was immediately scared for my personal safety.

The large, angry officer lunged at me and came through the window at me full speed. Pinning me to the seat he stuck his elbow in my neck, choking me and tried to unbuckle my seat belt. The officer yelled “I’m arresting you right now for resisting arrest”. Although no charges for the arrest that I was supposedly resisting had been read. I said loudly a couple of times that "I am a man of peace, I will not resist, there is no need for the use of force or violence", which should be part of the voice log of the officer.

He called his partner and yelled “Let’s get this fucker out of here!” He ordered his partner to open the passenger door and yelled again “Let’s get this fucker out of here!” Being pinned I couldn't reach the lock and neither could the officer that was pinning me. The second officer said “It`s (the door) locked”. The first officer yelled “Smash the window”.

The second officer hesitated. The first officer again yelled “Do it!” “Do it now!” The second officer began hitting the passenger side window with his billy-club. After five or six blows to the window it shattered into million shards. He then opened the passenger door leaned over grabbed my arm and dragged me out over the passenger’s seat, the car being a manual, lurched forward as my foot left the clutch, endangering both the officer in my drivers side window and wrenching my body, I was thrown to the ground knelt on by both officers whilst I was handcuffed and literally thrown into the police cruiser. At this point I am traumatized by the speed and ferocity of the assault by a party that is supposed to serve and protect out citizens!

It is important to remember that I have done nothing wrong. All this time I am telling the officer that I am a man of peace and will not resist arrest. I’m just trying to get home. This appeared to be an accident scene possibly someone hurt and now I was being the one that was being hurt. I was pinned to the ground, roughly and tightly handcuffed, dragged to the cruiser. My head was then forcibly held to the trunk of the cruiser. I was frisked and forcibly thrown head first into the rear seat of the cruiser.

All this transpired over the course of five to ten minutes. Don’t quote me. As you can imagine, I was scared shitless by then.

My glasses had been I felt purposely broken. When the officer had his arm up to my neck he released briefly in order to hit me 3 times in the face with his elbow and raking the glasses from my face. Very expensive glasses I might add. I asked the officer in a baffled voice “Why would you do that when I’m not resisting? He didn't reply. There was some cuts on my face either from the shards or the gravel . My knee, my ankle, Achilles tendon, shoulder and neck had all been injured in the process of arrest.

I reiterate that up until this point I had not resisted in any way, my hands were in full view of the officer, my posture was neutral and my tone of voice was even, I had not refused to identify myself, I had asked the officer for his Name, that and misinterpreted his directions, but quickly came to a halt when asked to do so and although ordered rapid fire to do several things at once was actually never given the opportunity to comply. Until I was in the back of the police cruiser, then I gave the officer my name and date of birth. I was then taken to the OPP office on Lansdowne street in Peterborough. I had my outer clothes, belt and possessions taken from me and I was placed in a cell, the arresting officer went to talk to the Sergeant and another officer took my fingerprints.

The Sergeant then came down to talk to me, asked me if I had had anything to drink, to which I replied just one glass of wine with my meal at Hotbelly Mama's. The officer that had assaulted me then came down an berated me saying that I had told him I had nothing to drink as if to imply that I had lied to him, however it was not until the Sergeant asked me about drinking that the subject had even come up and I was never told that I had entered a R.I.D.E. program. I then over heard the Sergeant say to the officer in the next room as if in disbelief... "Are you sure he assaulted you? Are you absolutely sure?" to which the officer said "Yes, yes I`m sure" Now I`m being handled with "kid gloves" officer is referring to me by my given name, Steve, telling me how he thought I must have had a "Lapse of Judgement" back at the accident scene. The officer had a mercurial personality and showed no remorse or emotion, for him it was as if nothing had happened (which is why I think that this is not a first time occurrence, personal opinion only) I was given my clothes back for which I signed, I also signed for my fingerprints (one copy to the RCMP) and I signed a Promise to Appear, which given my treatment I consider that I signed under implicit threat of violence. I was then released at 2:30 am with no winter gear, a pair of broken glasses, no Visa as my car was in the pound at Johnson`s Towing til 8:30 am. All the Hotels were full as there was a Pete`s Tournament. Ironically, as I left the officers said I could sleep on the chairs in the waiting room of the Detachment if I wanted... He said he was concerned that I might get hurt!

It is very unfortunate what happened to you on that day. Though I must say that I am not surprised to hear your story. Ironically, during my time as a Probationary Constable at the Peterborough County OPP detachment not only was I treated like a leper, but I was also accused (among many other things) of being a violent person without any grounds for such accusation whatsoever. I never resorted to any use of my 'use of force police equipment' during my entire time with the Ontario Provincial Police. As a matter of fact last time I used force (my bare hands only) against another human being was back in November 1995 after a bottle of beer had been smashed on my head from behind leaving 5 scars and over 50 stitches on my body - head, face, and left hand. Yet Peterborough County OPP officers went over and above in fabricating false and baseless accusations against me in order to oppress, humiliate, isolate and eventually get rid of me. I am not going to reiterate here over what I have already described on the http://www.racisminopp.org website. All I want to say that the job of the police is to Serve and Protect!!! Not to collect stats! Not to hammer people! Not to fabricate false accusations! Not to lay as many charges as possible! Not to treat people as numbers! Not to consider themselves superior to civilians! But unfortunately they do. And I am a living witness to that.

Steve, I wish I could say that I can't believe your story, but I am not surprised at all. The moment that you asked the cops name, you insulted his huge ego. Can you imagine what a Nazi would do if a Jew had requested the Nazi's name, pretty much the same thing. The Peterborough OPP detachment is overrun with this type of cop right from the top to the bottom. These things keep happening and none of the incompetent higher ups will get off their useless asses and do anything. They will only get off their asses to protect themselves and each other from liability. They are all in the same union ( gang ) and if one of them steps out of line with the other gang ( union ) members they will be put down for it.

To serve and protect-------- Themselves and their egos and each other gang member.Like a sergeant from that detachment has been quoted saying, " go out and hammer them ". Probably the same sergeant that was in charge of the cops you were involved with Steve.

Michael, maybe you should have used your pepper spray. club or gun a few times. Maybe you should have assaulted, unlawfully arrested, fabricated evidence and lied on the witness stand against some people. How can you expect to fit in with Nazis if you don't beat on a few Jews out there. It was a gift to your soul that you do not work at the DIRTY DETACHMENT. They likely would have brought you down. I know a couple of other cops in that detachment that have been brought down to the Nazi level and are now solid members of the DIRTY DETACHMENT.